TIAA Selling HQ Building at 730 Third Avenue [Updated]

National financial services organization the Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association, also known as TIAA, is putting its Midtown headquarters building at 730 Third Avenue on the market, Commercial Observer has learned. The decision to sell is purely financial, according to a source briefed on TIAA’s plans but not authorized to discuss them publicly.

An investment sales broker who is not involved with the property weighed in on the building’s value.

“I would say, off the cuff, without knowing the [net operating income] or occupancy, it should trade for more than $600 per square foot and even as high as $850 a square foot given its proximity to the [United Nations],” the broker said. That amounts to as much as $462.5 million.

TIAA, known as TIAA-CREF until 2016, is expected to keep its headquarters at the 1959-built 28-story, 665,110-square-foot office structure between East 45th and East 46th Streets. The source said that the company intends to remain in the building after the sale.

“TIAA regularly assesses its real estate footprint to ensure that it best meets the needs of our clients and employees,” a company spokesman emailed, declining to provide further detail. “We are currently evaluating options for our property at 730 Third Avenue in Manhattan, including potentially selling and signing a long-term lease in the building. Our headquarters will remain there and we plan to undertake renovations and technology upgrades to create a more streamlined, collaborative, flexible and comfortable work environment for our teams. We have owned the property since 1955 and believe that now is an attractive time for this transaction, to the benefit of our clients, participants and employees.”